Demand for ethnic flavours and seasonings is growing.
Indian, Italian and Chinese food still dominates the ethnic market, but
UK consumers are becoming more and more intrepid when it comes to
exotic flavours. “The British palate has become more adventurous over
the last year and people are starting to eat more spicy foods,” says
Juergen Maurer, of Continental Meat Technology. “Ten years ago, there
was just no demand for spicy food, but now Mediterranean and Far
Eastern products are in much higher demand.”
African
flavours are considered to be a big growth area at the moment,
specifically Moroccan. RAPS UK general manager Ian Mackway says the
best way to keep ahead of ethnic trends is to look at what is happening
in foodservice; if restaurants start to kick a flavour off,
supermarkets will usually follow suit. “I think that the next big
ethnic flavours will be Polish,” he says. “The UK’s Polish population
provides a big market and there are already Polish restaurants opening
up, which is a sign of the demand.”
The UK’s
growing Muslim population means that demand for halal ingredients is
also on the rise, with many ingredients manufacturers looking to gain
halal accreditation. “Although we do not specialise in halal
ingredients, we get quite a few demands for them,” confirms Verstegen’s
Neil Bartlett. “We’ve been working towards halal certification for the
last couple of years and have now achieved it, so it might be an area
we develop further in the future.”